The Lesson
by sasha1600
Summary: Kate discovers the consequences of disobeying Gibbs’s orders.  Warning  Spanking of adult.  Don’t like?  Don’t read!


**The Lesson**

**Disclaimer**: I don't own them, I just play with them.

**Summary**: Kate discovers the consequences of disobeying Gibbs's orders. **Warning** - Spanking of adult. Don't like? Don't read!

To Supergirl3684, whose stories encouraged me to share one of my own.

A/N: I'm new to the world of fanfiction and this is my first story. Reviews appreciated, but be nice! Note the warning, and no flames, please – I really don't need to hear that it isn't your thing.

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**Warning: this story contains the non-sexual spanking of an adult and references to BDSM. If you are not comfortable with that, click on that 'back' button now. You've been warned.**

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Kate sent the document on her screen to the printer and snatched it from the machine before it had even finished its final whirling. She scrawled a signature across the bottom of it just as she heard the ping of the elevator door opening behind her. Gibbs strode by her to his own desk, his face a stony mask. He didn't meet her eyes when she raised her head as he passed. He didn't even glance in her direction. Taking a deep breath, she quickly crossed the few feet between their desks, holding out the paper in her hand just as her boss was taking his seat. When he still did not acknowledge her, she let the paper fall onto the immaculate surface of the desk and began to walk away. 

She had barely taken a step when she felt Gibbs's hand on her shoulder, pulling her backwards and turning her around to face him. The tightness of the grip surprised her. He wasn't quite hurting her, but he was certainly making sure that she knew that he wasn't giving her any choice about staying put. She shrugged her shoulder in a futile attempt to dislodge his hand. She could feel the warmth of his body across the few inches that separated them. It had to be a Marine thing, this habit he had of invading his subordinates' body space when he was planning to chew them out. Only Kate wasn't his subordinate any more. Or, at least, she wouldn't be for much longer.

'Just what makes you think that I will accept your resignation, Agent Todd?'

Gibbs's voice was quiet, but anything but gentle. There was power in his voice. Kate fought the emotions she always felt when he spoke to her like that. Or stood that close to her. Hell, when he was within fifty feet of her, speaking or not. She was a profiler, she knew why she was so attracted to the alpha male thing, and she was determined not to let him see that she thought of him as anything other than her boss.

She looked up at him, carefully keeping her face expressionless. There was only mild defiance in her voice as she replied, 'Ok, Gibbs. We can do it your way. Just fire me and get it over with.'

'I'm not going to fire you.'

She knew that her face betrayed her surprise and confusion. She had disobeyed a direct order.

Gibbs had told her to cover the back door of a building where the team was arresting a Navy lieutenant who thought it would be a good idea to smuggle historical artefacts into the country aboard the aircraft carrier on which he served. But when she heard gunfire coming from inside the building, she'd left the position she'd taken up in the parking lot and raced up the back stairs, thinking only that her colleagues, her friends, were in danger and she'd be damned if she didn't try to help.

In her haste, she hadn't noticed the man who had broken his flight down those same stairs and ducked through the doorway onto one of the floors until she'd passed, then raced out the now-unguarded door behind her. Into the parking lot where his accomplice was waiting. Waiting in the back of a van, where he hadn't been seen by Kate when she'd quickly checked that the parked vehicles were unoccupied. Where he could observe through the darkly tinted and very dirty back window, without being observed. Where he had the perfect shot when the man burst through the door, expecting a get-away car and finding a bullet to the head instead. The lieutenant had been killed because his partners hadn't trusted him not to break if he were caught. And maybe he'd been killed because Kate had left her post. Maybe if she had stayed in the parking lot, he would never have opened the back door the building, not have taken those few steps that brought him into his partner's line of fire. At the very least, maybe she could have stopped the van from driving away afterwards.

Of course, the team had been fine when Kate had reached the top of the stairs. The lieutenant had fired at Gibbs, but missed. Tony and Gibbs had taken cover, but by the time they fired back their target had launched himself into the stairwell. Gibbs had been furious at her for leaving her post, and more furious when they returned to the parking lot and found the body. He'd sent her back to the office while the others processed the crime scene.

'You're not?'

'No, Kate. I'm not going to fire you. I'm going to punish you. And you are going to take your lesson and learn from it. And you're not going to make the same mistake again.'

Oh.

Punish her? Did that mean he was going to suspend her? Keep her on desk duty for a while? Send her to some retraining course where she could learn how not to get people killed while neglecting her duty?

'Bend over, Kate.'

There's no way he just said that.

'What?'

'You heard me.'

Ok, maybe he did.

'Gibbs, you can't! You don't have the author...'

'Now, Kate.'

'Gibbs...'

She'd barely got the first word of the protest out before she found herself face-down on Gibbs's desk, her left arm twisted behind her back. She silently cursed the man's Marine training.

'Please, don't...'. She hated herself for begging, for being weak. But the words were out before her brain knew what her mouth was doing.

She felt Gibbs's body against hers as he leaned over her to whisper, so the others couldn't hear him. 'Kate, I know you're scared. This is going to hurt like hell. But it will be over in about a minute. And you are going to be ok. Just. Trust. Me.' The last words were breathed into her ear, taking her own breath away. Then the warmth of his body was removed, leaving only the slight pressure of his hand holding her down.

She heard the clink of metal against metal, but only identified the sound as a buckle being undone when she heard the soft swish of his belt being drawn from its loops. Terrified, she struggled against the desk, trying to find enough leverage to break his hold on her.

Behind her, Tony tried to look busy at his computer, really using the screen as a mirror so he could watch the scene unfolding on the other side of the bullpen. He knew Gibbs would be pissed if he looked over and saw him watching. But he'd fantasised too often about his attractive co-worker not to be more than a little turned on by the view he had of her ass. And while he wasn't usually into the spanking thing, he'd been around Abby long enough to know that _somebody's_ fantasy was playing out, and even if it wasn't really one of his, he certainly wasn't going to miss it.

'Umm, Boss? Kate's right. You aren't actually allowed...'

'McGee?'

'Yes, Boss?'

'You do _not_ want to get involved in this. Understand?'

'Uh...'

'Shut up, Probie.' Tony made eye contact with him for a moment, then turned back to the computer.

McGee stared at his desk, feeling guilty for not doing more to protect Kate. He was a trained federal agent, he knew how to restrain a man. But Gibbs was a former Marine and had some seriously scary fighting skills. Maybe if he and Tony both tried to pull him away they'd have a chance, but Tony obviously wasn't going to back him up. Cursing himself for not having the nerve to draw his weapon and tell his boss to back away, he instead tried to block out the memory of Kate pleading with Gibbs not to hurt her.

Gibbs raised his belt, hesitating for a fraction of a moment as he looked down at his agent. She was frightened, helpless in his grasp, and soon she would be crying out from the pain he was about to inflict upon her. His strong, smart, beautiful Kate. He could never let her know how he felt about her. How much he wanted to protect her, not just in the way that he cared for the rest of his team, but with a fierce, primal desire to keep his woman safe. Not that she could ever be his woman. But, you know... And now he was going to hurt her, humiliate her in front of the others. Would she ever forgive him? Look at him without hatred in her eyes? Speak to him without coldness in her voice?

It was the only way, he told himself. Keeping her on the team meant punishing her. Punishing her severely enough that she would be able to get past her own guilt, her sense of having let the team down. If she couldn't do that, if she were always feeling that she had something to prove, something to make up for, she'd be a danger to herself and others and useless as an agent. She had to really believe that she'd been punished enough to cancel out the offence. And, even though it wasn't exactly according to regs, this was the simplest, surest way to achieve that. And making DiNozzo and McGee watch would ensure that they sympathised with Kate, made sure she felt that she was still part of the team, and never even suggested that she had gotten off lightly for what she had done. That was important, too, for the team to function.

None of that made this any easier.

X X X

Gibbs brought the belt down hard on Kate's ass. Her world went white. She gasped, determined not to cry out, and clenched her fists against the pain that spread like lightening through her body. Despite a lifetime in Catholic schools, she'd never been strapped before. She'd always been the good girl. Even when she'd stepped out of line, nobody had believed it of her and she'd never been seriously punished, even when she deserved it. She was shocked by how much it hurt as the leather made contact a second time. And a third. She fought against the tears that streamed down her cheeks, outraged that Gibbs would do this to her and furious at herself for letting him see how much he was hurting her. Again and again she felt the searing pain of his belt. Her breath was coming in ragged gasps, and she tasted blood as she bit her lip to keep from crying out. She felt the last of her control slipping away and sobbed openly as Gibbs continued to discipline her. By the time the tenth and final lash burned its way into her consciousness, she was barely capable of coherent thought. She felt consumed by the pain. Her ass felt like it was on fire and it barely mattered that the spanking had stopped because the pain continued to dominate her senses. She struggled to stand when she realised that Gibbs was no longer pinning her to his desk but found that her legs couldn't hold her weight and she slid from the desk to the floor, sending shockwaves of pain through her trembling body.

X X X

Gibbs brought the belt down hard on Kate's ass. The _whack_ of the leather against her body echoed around the bullpen and Tony saw her muscles tighten and her face contort in pain. He watched as Gibbs continued to whip her every few seconds with the wide leather lash and as she lost her struggle to take it in silence. He found he wasn't enjoying it as much as he thought he would. In fact, he wasn't enjoying it at all. It was too obvious that Kate wasn't enjoying it, that she was really in pain, and this wasn't a sexual ritual done for her pleasure. Tony was open-minded – he tried to imagine Kate writhing under Gibbs's hand, arching her back eagerly, desperate for the next kiss of leather... now _that_ would be hot – but he wasn't a sadist, and it wasn't hot if she didn't like it. And when Gibbs dropped his belt on the floor and Kate collapsed in a sobbing heap next to it, he was out of his seat, ready to fold her into his arms.

X X X

Gibbs brought the belt down hard on Kate's ass. McGee winced at the sound of the leather against her body. He couldn't see her face, but he didn't need to. He felt each lash piercing his heart. He'd felt the same way whenever his sister had done something wrong when they were kids, and he'd sat listening to her being spanked in the next room. He stared intently at his desk, blinking away the tears that filled his own eyes as he heard Kate's whimpers turn into sobs. He waited for it to end, half-reaching for the phone, ready to call Abby to come help Kate to the relative privacy of the women's washroom as soon as Gibbs strode off to get his next coffee.

X X X

Gibbs brought the belt down hard on Kate's ass. He felt her twitch under his hand and tightened his grip slightly to hold her still. If she moved, if the belt landed somewhere other than where he meant it to because he let her pull away, he might really hurt her. He carefully administered a second blow, then a third, watching her closely to see how she was taking it. He knew she was crying, but she was still in control. He made the next stoke a bit harder and, listening carefully as her breathing changed, pushed her further with a sharp lash that finally drew a cry of pain. Knowing he had taken her beyond what she thought she could stand, forcing her to stop trying to master the pain and to surrender to the experience of being disciplined, he maintained the same intensity for the remaining five lashes; he had found her threshold, and didn't need to be any harder on her. Each shuddering sob cut him like a knife, but he knew she could bear it. A sound thrashing would hurt her, but it wouldn't harm her.

He drew a deep breath of relief as he spanked her the tenth, and last, time. He dropped his belt as if the leather had burnt into his hand instead of into Kate's ass. He released his hold on her, but before he could tell her to lie still until she caught her breath, she was trying, and failing, to stand. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw DiNozzo halfway to rushing to her side and knew that McGee was torn between his order to stay out of it and the agent's own instinct to help.

Ignoring them both, he dropped to one knee and gently pulled her into a hug. He held her tightly, with her face pressed against his chest, her body still wracked with sobs. He held her until she quietened and tried to push him away. He held her as her tears changed to ones of anger and she pounded her fists weakly against him. As she finally collapsed against him, too exhausted to fight anymore, he gently wiped her tears away and murmured 'You're ok. You're safe'.

'DiNozzo!'

'Yes, Boss?'

'Get back to work. McGee, call Abby and tell her to meet me in autopsy in 15 minutes.'

'Autopsy?'

'Yeah, McGee, autopsy. I want Ducky to give Kate something for the pain and then I want Abby to take her home.'

'Oh.' McGee reached for the phone as Gibbs pulled Kate to her feet and started leading her towards the elevator.

'Gibbs, I don't need...'

'Shhhh...'

The door closed on them and Kate wasn't surprised when Gibbs pushed the stop button, turning the elevator into his favourite conference room. She decided to take the initiative.

'Get your hands off me, Gibbs. I don't need your help. And I sure as hell don't _want_ your help.'

Her voice was higher-pitched than usual, and choking back sobs of pain, frustration, and anger didn't help. She wanted to sound outraged and indignant and instead she sounded pathetic and that made her even more furious.

'Kate...'

She was almost hysterical as she continued.

'Don't you dare! You think you can take a belt to me and I'll be grateful to you for, for what? for not firing me? or, let's see, how about for humiliating me in front of my co-workers? for treating me like a child instead of like your colleague? not to mention for the _pain_ you just caused me!'

'Knock it off, Kate.' Gibbs was standing in front of her now, speaking quietly but firmly, still supporting her by one elbow.

'Gibbs...'

'I spanked you because you deserved it. If you disobey me again, I will spank you harder and longer. Because you are a good agent and if I have to punish you to keep you from doing something stupid and getting yourself killed, or doing something you won't be able to live with, then that's what I'm going to do. I will never let you off lightly, Kate. I care too much about you to let you be anything but your best.'

Suddenly his hand was behind her head and he was kissing her deeply. She fought him for only a second before leaning into the kiss, opening her mouth to him and letting him pull her closer. She could feel the heat of his body as he held her close, could feel his arousal through the few layers of clothing that separated them. She was grateful for his arm around her waist because she probably couldn't stay upright on her own at that moment.

'But I can think of better ways to make you scream.'

Oh. God. She definitely could not stay upright on her own at that moment.

He kissed her again, lightly, his lips lingering only a moment on hers. And then he hit the button again and the elevator resumed its journey.

Ducky insisted on checking her blood pressure and heart rate but she refused to let him check the amount of bruising. She accepted a couple of painkillers folded into a piece of paper, nodding her understanding as he instructed her on how to take them. She wondered briefly why Ducky didn't find Gibbs's choice of punishment surprising; had he gone beyond head-slapping before, with other agents?

Abby collected her and helped her into the car, suppressing a smile as she tried to find a position that would keep her weight off of her very sore backside. 'Relax, Kate. _Enjoy_ the pain. I bet Gibbs is really great with his hands', the Goth lab tech said mischievously, smirking up at the gruff older agent who had insisted on accompanying them to the parking garage.

'Actually, Abs, I used my belt.'

'Oooooh, Gibbs! I _love_ the feel of leather on my skin...'

'Just take care of Kate, ok, Abby?' But at the same time he was signing to her, '_If you even think about messing up your data on purpose to try to get a spanking, you'll regret it._'

'_Why? Will you spank me _really_ hard?_'

'_No. I'll have the Director enforce the dress code._'

Abby stuck her tongue out at him.

Gibbs leaned into the car to say good-bye to Kate. She looked like she was about to say something, but didn't. He whispered to her, making sure that Abby couldn't see his lips to read them, 'I meant what I said. And I _am_ very good with my hands.' Gratified to see her shudder slightly, he stepped back and watched the car pull away.


End file.
